


Little Bear

by CaptArthur (anauthorsworld00)



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Gen, My OCs save Sophia, Sophia survives
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-14
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2020-03-04 20:42:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,191
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18820345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anauthorsworld00/pseuds/CaptArthur
Summary: What if Sophia did not get turned but instead stumbled upon a mother and her son camping in the woods.The little boy convinces his mother to help her and they spend a lot of time trying to help get Sophia back to her parents.





	Little Bear

“Mama,” came the hushed whisper from above her, there had been frantic footsteps all around their makeshift fort, she had been gutting the fish her boy had caught that morning as he lay in the branches above with the hunting rifle, staring through the sight lens for any sign of danger. 

His soft whisper was followed by a low whisper through their makeshift can phone, it was the signal of a human, not a walker, both things were shortly followed by two taps of his can against the tree, no danger. 

“What do you say, little bear?”

“Can I get her, mama? She looks scared.”

“Will your camouflage scare her?”

“Maybe mama, but the blood on you might scare her more.”

“Alright little bear, pass me the sight nozzle on your way out.”

The very thing she had asked for dropped into her hands from above and she chuckled as she watched him shimmy his way down from the platform above them. His feet barely made a sound on the ground as he approached the young girl, his face full of concentration. 

She watched as he began to act scared tripping over his feet, “mama!” He yelled out tears streaming from his eyes, “mama!”

He smacked into a tree drawing blood from that one graze on his arm that never really healed anymore, the little girl who her son had spotted looked around, her son had always had a flare for the dramatic. And in some ways these days it helped, the girl shook as she saw him appear in her sightline he had a small knife out in his hands but accompanied with the tears and the blood he looked harmless, he spotted her and sagged, “have you seen my mama?”

She whimpered at that, “I lost mine too.”

He came forwards wrapping his arms around her, he had dropped the knife when he began approaching her, he sniffled into her shirt. 

Back in the shelter she felt her heart melt as the young girl wrapped her arms around him in return, she wondered how long that little girl had been running around alone in the wilderness for.

“I’m Mischka.” His slight Russian twinge to the name made her squint, “Mika?” 

He laughed at that and brushed a stray tear smudging his camo paint, “It means little and funny bear in Russian. You can call me Bear.”

“I’m Sophia.”

“Will you help me find my mama, Sophia?”

She nodded solemnly, she didn’t want to be alone any more and she didn’t remember which way Rick had told her to run when he had found her. She had disobeyed and now she was here, her mom was someone else, she missed her mom. 

“If we find yours will you help me find mine.”

“I hope we will be able to.”

Sophia nodded at that, surely that sounded right. “Where’s your mom?”

“I found a walker by the stream where I was getting fish and I didn’t retrace my steps properly, our camp is somewhere nearby.”

“Camp?”

“Yeah, did you have one?”

“In Atlanta. My dad got bit, so did some others.”

“There were a lot of you?”

“We were out on the road, I ran into the woods. Rick found me and told me to run back to the road but I got lost. I’m scared Bear.”

 

“Mischka!” 

“Mama!”, he grabbed Sophia’s arm dragging her towards where his mom had appeared from their camp, “mama, this is Sophia.”

She looked at Sophia with a soft smile, “come here sweetheart, we’ll get you cleaned up, Mischka, where is your knife?”

“Sorry mama,” he flashed a soft smile at his new friend before darting back to pick up the lost weapon and tuck it back into his belt, Sophia only entered the fort when Mischka returned and he smiled at her again. 

“Your name is Sophia?”

“Yes.” Her voice was small. 

“My name is Dasha, you have met my boy Mischka. Can I check your wounds?”

She shrugged and Dasha smiled, flashing a look at Mischka who disappeared and reappeared within seconds with a plastic box, “does anywhere in particular hurt sweetheart?”

Sophia opened up her hands where the gravel burns lay and splinters stuck out, blotchy where the wood had pierced the skin, “Mischka, the moonshine.”

She held the bottle up for the girl to see, “its just alcohol, okay? I’m just disinfecting, it will hurt less later.” 

She poured it over her hand, apologising softly in Russian as she peeled some tweezers out of the box and began to pull at them, “Its okay sweet girl, honest.”

Once all the splinters were gone and Mischka had mopped away some of her tears, she pulled two bandages from the box soaked them in the moonshine again before rolling them around the gravel burns. Dasha kissed the bandages on both hands smiling at the giggle she brought forth from the little girl, and let go. 

“Feel better.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Can I ask you some questions, Sofia?”

She nodded a little more hesitantly this time. 

“How old are you?”

“I’m twelve.” Dasha smiled as she felt Mischka take his seat beside her leg and within reaching distance of Sophia, she ran a hand through his hair, rubbing the greasy strands and decided it was wash day tomorrow. 

“Mischka is nine, he acts fourteen isn’t that right kid?”

“Mama,” he whined pulling his head away from her hand, eliciting several giggles from Sophia again, “Dasha, where are you from?”

Dasha smiled at the young girl to let her know it was alright for her to ask them questions, “I’m Russian, so is Mischka, but he was born here. I moved to Atlanta to give him a better life.”

“But isn’t your family back there?”

“I suppose so, but it is also here now. My papa is still there but he didn’t really want anything to do with my little boy, but that was because I was his little girl. My mama had died when I was little, much younger than you, I don’t really remember her. What about you? Where is your family from?”

“Atlanta. My daddy died over there just last week, I don’t know where my mom is. Will you help me find her?”

Tears were escaping from her pretty eyes and Dasha reached forwards scooping the little girl up into a hug, “I promise, we will do everything we can to get you back with your mother. First things first though, Mischka can you prepare another hammock please? If needs be I will sleep on the platform.” 

Mischka patted Sophia on the arm in sympathy on his way past as Sophia clung to his mother, “we will start looking for your mom tomorrow, after I give that bear a wash. Do you want a wash?”

Sophia thought about it before nodding, and Dasha made a decision, “I will set the traps tonight while you and him sleep and then we will all go wash in the stream in the morning. We wont be interrupted then, sound good?”

She nodded sleepily, “Safe here?”

“Of course, sweet girl. You are safe here for now until we get you back to your mom, and your camp.”

“Thank you Dasha.”

“No, thank you, Sophia. I haven’t seen my little bear in there smile like that since before this all started.”

“He reminds me of my friend from camp.”

“Another kid?”

“He’s eleven.”

“Well, I hope you get to see him again too.” Sophia yawned eyes drifting closed, Dasha stood up her arms around her walking her over to where Mischka was still searching the boxes of supplies, “no more cloth?”

“None big enough mama.”

“That's okay, little bear. I’ll put her in your bed, and you can sleep with me in mine once I have set the traps outside. Sound good?”

“I’ll stand to watch mama. I promise.”

“I know you will, my good boy.”

She set Sophia down gently in the hammock and pulled the old Star Wars quilt they had scavenged over her propping her head up with the pillow with the matching pattern. 

She pressed a kiss to his hairline before disappearing through one of the disguised flaps of her fort. 

Darkness was setting and she pressed a hand to the small device hanging around her neck, light drew the bastards in for sure but she needed some to see when she was setting those traps, come on. 

The perimeter around the camp was larger than anyone would think, but that made it better, she and Mischka had rigged several warnings that if anyone or anything tripped it they would hear them and be prepared for whatever would come. 

The traps took about ten to twenty minutes to set before she slipped back into the fort, a smile tugged up on her lips as she saw her little bear sat on watch beside their newest friend. “Come on little bear.”

She tugged him up into her arms and fell back into the hammock, he snuggled up beside his mama and she nuzzled into his hair, “night mama.”

“Goodnight little bear.”

Morning came about from Mischka tugging at her shirt, nudging her towards the small cries and whimpers coming from beneath the Star Wars quilt.

“Mama?” He asked sleepily rubbing at his eyes, “go back to sleep, little bear, we are going bathing later. I’ll wake you up in a little while.”

Moving over to their guest she placed her hand against the young girls shoulder, tears being brought to her eyes as the girl flinched away, eyes blinking up at her from beneath the sheets. “Sorry, sorry, sorry.”

“Oh, sweetheart, its alright. Nightmares?” 

Dasha turned around pulling a stool up to perch beside the hammock. Sophia nodded, “did I wake you up?”

“It’s fine sweetheart, I’m going up to the perch, would you like to join me?” 

She nodded. Pulling the star wars quilt off of her, she moved it over to where Mischka was hugging one of her jackets. He hummed in thanks and snuggled deeper into the warmth, she helped Sophia out of the swinging material and held her hand as they walked towards the bony tree in the middle of the fort. 

“I’m going to climb up first and then drop the rope ladder down for you, okay, sweetheart?”

They were up in the perch in no time, hidden by branches, and supported by logs they had stacked beside one another for a steady balcony, there was the big crate full of guns and ammo with several different sight nozzles with the different magnifications. Sophia looked around at the place, a tarp covering the top to stop rain getting in at them and a big long rope tied to the branches that belonged to a tree beside their own. 

“Whats that for?”

“Emergency exit, I’m afraid. Me and our bear have prepared for almost every instance. We have a few perches around these woods, with more supplies. So you don’t have to worry about much with us here.”

“How did you learn about all of this?”

“My papa was very interested in surviving whatever came so when my mama died in a freak accident, we practically moved out into the woods. I’ve taught little bear most of what I know, to be honest I would rather he didn’t know how to gut a fish.”

“My mom’s friend Daryl, knows how to gut a fish. He caught a lot of squirrels when we were with him.”

“I think I would probably like him.”

“I miss them, Dasha.”

“I know you do, sweet girl, and I promise you we will get you back.”

“Thank you.”

“Mama?” 

“Yes little bear?”

“Swimming?”

“You’re right. We’ll be right down. Get the towels.”

“Yes, mama.”

The stream was nicer than Sophia expected, her new friends were funny too. Dasha was chasing after Mischka as he screamed playfully dodging her hands as she went to give him a proper clean. “Come back here, scruffy!”

“Mama, mama, no!” 

He darted behind Sophia as she was scrubbing at some of the dirt on her arms, she took a look at her clothing and frowned, there were two big arms around her and she squealed, “don’t worry about your clothes, Levka. We have more back at camp.”

“What does that mean?”

Mischka squealed as he dodged the out grasping arms of his mother, “it means Lioness, Sophia, it suits you. Levka.” He rolled the name off of his tongue with a growl and dove beneath the water. 

“Do all Russian names mean something Dasha?”

“Da, my sweet Levka.”

“Then what does your name mean?”

“Mama’s means precious. Like what Golem called his ring.”

There was movement by the bank of the river and Sophia stiffened in Dasha’s arms, Dasha followed her line of sight and made sure to keep the young girl where she was when he began to approach them, “Dasha.” She murmured quietly flinching away from him. 

“It’s okay Levka, he’s a friend. Oscar this is Sophia. Sophia, this is Mischka’s uncle Oscar.”

“Oscar means money.” Mischka supplied as he began to wade through the water trying to get close to the man on the bank. 

“So that's whose tracks I’ve been following all night then Dasha. It’s nice to meet you Sofia.” He umphed as a wet Mischka threw himself into his arms, “Jesus bear you’re getting big.” He wrapped his arms tighter around the sopping boy and pressed a sloppy kiss to the side of his head, “Dasha, I found some more supplies, stacked them up perch 4 and some up perch 6, some more guns and food. Got some water purifying tablets and some more matches. Do you think that will be enough for now, almost got ran off the bloody road by some geezer in a camper van.”

“camper van?” Sophia perked up at that and Dasha looked down at her, “your people Levka?”

“Dale had a camper van.”

“Where did you see them, Oscar?”

“Them? It was just the camper van. It was leaving the big road off that way, about two, three days ago, it takes a bloody long time to get out here if you don’t remember Dasha.”

“Oscar, did you see where it went?”

“No, but it was away from where the bloody gang of zombies came last time.”

Sophia shivered in her arms and Dasha looked away from her long time friend, “you’ve seen the gangs?”

“It’s what made me run away Dasha. I left my mom.”

“It’s alright Levka, like I’ve said we’ll get you back. And we know that they were still here three days ago and they likely are still here if the gangs have anything to do with it.”

“Could we find them?”

Sophia’s eyes were big and hopeful and all Dasha wanted to do was fulfil everything that kid had ever asked for, then Mischka was there too, “mama, please. Could we?”

Oscar looked at her exasperated but he shrugged, “he’s your kid and I ain’t about to go against you Dash, whatever you do I do, and if that means getting the kid I’ve never met before home, then I’m all in.”

“Uncle Oscar!” Mischka pumped the air, she would be fighting a losing battle if she even tried to fight them, but she saw that little girl and her little boy standing unified after a little under 24 hours together and she knew that keeping them hiding in the woods forever was a slow deal. “Do you have a truck Oscar?”

Sophia's arms were around her middle in an instant, and that was enough of a gift in itself for her, without any reward. “Mischka, I want you to get the backpacks, One small one each for you and Sophia, you know what you can handle, but don’t overfill Sophia’s. Get the big ones, only put necessities in, tins, matches, water purifying tablets, one water bottle each, you know what I mean. Me and Oscar will get the guns and the rest of the water. You have a holster for about ten to fifteen knives, fill them. We will get as much stuff on our backs as possible and we will head for the road.”

The two kids nodded agreeably and made their way back out of the river back towards the camp, she turned back to Oscar, “So car or not?”

“Not, do you think I would have been pushed off the road by a camper van if I had been driving something. Come on Dash, do you really think this is a good idea.”

“That poor kid was running away from walkers when Mischka spotted her, he brought her in, this fragile little girl, she’s lovely Oscar and she just wants to get back to her family, so that is what we’re going to do for her.”

“What if her mom’s dead? What then Dasha?”

“There is a whole group of them that would want to see her and she needs some familiarity, we’re just a safety blanket right now. I’m not leaving her to die and you’ve seen Mischka with her, he wants a group, he doesn’t want to be living in these woods all his life. He’s nine Oscar, that little girl is twelve and she is more a child than our bear. He deserves a childhood.”

“I hate you sometimes you know that Dash.”

“It’s too late to get rid of us now, I’m sorry Oscar you missed your shot.”

“I know. Biggest regret of my life.”

“Come on you jerk, we’ve gotta get those weapons so we don’t die out there and disappoint the kids.”

“Alright.”

When they made it back to the camp, all the crates of weapons dragging behind them, the sun was setting and Mischka was shaking, “Whats up little bear?”

“We heard shots.”

“We’re fine, kid.”

“No, from that direction. Loads mama, I think something bad is happening.”

“Alright. Where’s Sophia?”

“She’s inside packing her bag again. Are we ready to go, mama? I think she wants to make sure her mama is still alive.”

“You got mine and Oscar’s bags sorted?”

“Yeah, all tarps are down, I left the perch up and the tents so if needs be we can come back, all traps are set too. I rigged it up to that juke box so walkers will come here if someone passes through and then at least we’ll have a head start from anything too nasty.”

“Good thinking, little bear.”

“Grab Sophia, and we’ll get going. We’ll go back towards the main road and then we’ll go from there. If her people thought she was going to come back then maybe they’ve left her some clues on how to find them. Its our best bet.”

 

“We travelling in the dark?” Oscar asked leaning against the tree to their left, “gonna have to, especially if shots have been fired. Mischka, are those lights still rigged up?”

“Yes mama. But just to the edge of our perimeter.”

“That’s good enough. I still have my pendant so I can walk front, Mischka, give yours to Oscar and he can walk the back.”


End file.
